Fake ‘city workers’ are preying on South Florida residents. Police warn of latest scam
Boynton Beach police have a message for its residents — and it almost assuredly applies to those who live in other cities, as well: Don’t let strangers into your house when they claim to be city workers when there is no clear proof that they are who they say they are.
On Monday, Boynton Beach police were called to the home of an 84-year-old woman who told them that a man and a woman knocked on her door and told her that they were “Boynton Beach city workers,” spokeswoman Stephanie Slater said in a news release.
“They walked into her home and said they were contracted by the City of Boynton Beach to ‘look at things.’ ”
But they were scammers, police said.
The woman in the pair kept the homeowner on the porch and talked to her about a “contract” she and the man had with the city.
While she distracted the woman, the man walked around her home. The “city workers” spent about 10 minutes at the home before leaving.
That’s when the homeowner saw that the dresser drawers in her bedroom had been rummaged through. Nothing was taken.
But Boynton Beach police want to alert residents that this was a scam, Slater wrote.
“The City of Boynton Beach does not contract with anyone who would need to enter your home. The only City of Boynton Beach employees who will come to and/or enter your home without an appointment are police officers, firefighters or the fire marshal, or a community standards inspector. “That person may enter your home if you live in a rental property and it’s the annual life safety inspection,” according to Boynton Beach police.
But these people who come to your home should have a City of Boynton Beach photo ID card, a business card and a clearly marked vehicle parked outside. If they do not, they are not employed by the city, Slater warned.
“Do not let them into your home and call 911.”
This story was originally published November 5, 2019 at 4:43 PM.
